Udemy vs Udacity

Did you know every year more self-taught professionals are finding extremely high paying jobs. We live in the information age, where knowledge is now easily accessible.

People everywhere are learning from online courses the skill sets they need to find good careers. Gone are the days of needing college degrees, experience is what matters now.

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Two of the best websites that offer thousands of online courses are Udacity and Udemy. I’ve personally used both and will break down exactly which one I recommend.

Udacity

I’ll start with Udacity because it’s the lesser of the two companies, boasting only four million users in comparison to Udemy’s ten million. Udacity is still an incredible company and was one of the first websites ever with an online science program.

From my personal experience with both sites I found Udacity to be a great choice for beginners. However it’s noticeably lacking when compared to it’s big brother Udemy for several reasons which I’ve broken down below.

Course Material – 7/10

The course selection is quite extensive, the nano degree being the most popular. Although not all of the courses are equal and some need more attention. Most of the Udacity users easily find jobs with their course certifications but the certifications are very expensive in my opinion.

The courses promise to prepare you with real life work experience. You’ll notice that most the fields of work available to study are highly competitive. So getting a certification can really help separate you from pack and get you hired.

What I didn’t like is that there is no one on one support. They used too but for whatever reason its gone. So ff you get stuck on a course or have questions there’s nobody to help you out. Unlike Udemy which has premium instructors, really makes a difference in the quality of learning.

Overall, the content material is excellent for a beginner who likes being hands on. Googling questions and problem solving on their own. I personally always have questions so I found the transition to Udemy very good for my style of learning, that’s just me though.

Customer Service – 7/10

I only ever had one problem occur and the customer service did not handle the case properly. Also, if you give any negative feedback they will not respond even if it’s a valid issue.

The problem with the customer service seems to be from pressure of their investors. The company is growing with students but not hiring quickly enough and falling behind. Hopefully they can bolster their employee numbers soon to meet their growing demands.

Pricing – 6/10

The Android courses on Udacity are completely free even if they’re part of the Nanodegree curriculum. The Nano degree is the most popular course and costs $200 a month with an average of ten months to complete or $2,000 total.

Udacity is known for being more expensive than its competitors and only makes money by charging for its courses. The pricing is about 50% more expensive than Udemy, which is why many students transition over. At least that’s why I did aside from the extra advantages like one on one tutoring.

Udemy

Udemy is my favorite website for online curriculum’s. They offer the largest selection of courses that cover many different skill sets and topics. Beginners and advanced users like myself both agree the content is engaging and substantial.

The rate of users who successfully find employment is higher than competitors like Udacity. With over ten million users Udemy is leading the market for online education and receives consistently positive reviews.

Many of the courses are free and all users receive lifetime access. Now with over 80,000 different courses you can learn about almost anything. Usually the “popular” courses are high quality and more informative with more challenging content.

Regardless if you’re a beginner or advanced user you will find each curriculum is tiered in difficulty. So if it’s easy at first or you’re already know the answers it will grow more difficult with each pass.

Course Material – 9/10

Udemy offers more courses than any other online courses website. It’s a complete marketplace that lets content creators sell their courses. Professionals of different backgrounds create their course curriculum and upload it to Udemy where it’s sold for a premium.

Every content creator puts a lot of detail and effort into their course so that it’s of high quality to ensure maximum sales. So usually you’re getting the best educational material directly from real professionals that work in that field of work.

I would stay away from the courses that do not have many reviews or are not popular. Generally they’re lackluster and there’s a reason behind their lack of sales and reviews. Stick with the popular courses because they offer the most value and information.

There is a great preview function which lets you watch 5 minutes of any course before you buy it. You’ll know from first impressions whether the instructor is well educated or just a buster trying to make some quick money. The idea is for you to only buy what you see value in.

Customer Service – 8/10

The customer support at this time can only be reached through chat. The chat help hours are extended which is useful but overall the customer service is subpar without having proper phone support.

The only reason I didn’t grade lower than an 8 was because the chat representatives do answer promptly and resolve most issues. So they do work in case you have any questions or concerns.

Pricing – 10/10

The pricing is much cheaper when compared to other websites like Udacity. Most websites sell their material for retail price but because Udemy is an open marketplace ran by content creators the prices are heavily discounted.

For example if Udacity charges $200 a month for its Nanodegree course, on Udemy a content creator may only charge $20 for similar content.

Udacity vs Udemy

Udemy clearly has the upper hand to Udacity in almost every aspect. It’s much like comparing Apple to Walmart, both are mass scale companies but one creates a much better shopping experience.

Keep in mind, there still are competitors that offer better courses because they specialize in specific topics. For example, Treehouse is a much better choice than Udemy if you’re wanting strictly tech based courses.

So if you’re looking for general courses covering a wide variety of topics than Udemy is an excellent choice. However if you’re seeking general courses that are for more advanced users than you should try Skillshare because it’s the best option from my experience.

Author: Jeremy Kallowitz

I have a passion for online education, I've managed to build a successful career without even finishing high school by learning using a wide variety of online resources. I love to share information and learn from others!